Humanities and Social Sciences 2021 Research Journal 28, No. 1 (2021), pp 15-31 January-March Mariola GRZEBYK 1 Agata PIER ŚCIENIAK 2 ASSESSING THE ACTIVITIES OF LOCAL ADMINISTRATIONS FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF SOCIAL PARTICIPATION WITHIN CITIES WITH POVIAT STATUS IN THE PODKARPACKIE PROVINCE OF POLAND Social participation is most often perceived as a means of external cooperation between public authorities and citizens. It should be based on a common and consensual identification of problem issues and their resolution in a meaningful way through the exchange and justification of reasons, mutual education, and training and acquisition of civic competences. The basis of social participation in the local dimension is the use of citizens’ rights. The active attitude of citizens is an important guarantor in building a civic commune in which residents are not the object but the subject of public policy. Therefore, social participation favors building relations between self-government and citizens based on the principle of partnership and participation in local decision-making processes. The purpose of the article is to evaluate the activity and involvement of local administration in creating appropriate conditions for the active participation of citizens in the field of social participation. In order to achieve this goal, surveys were conducted among the inhabitants of four cities with poviat status in Podkarpackie Province, Poland, namely, Rzeszów, Krosno, Przemy śl, and Tarnobrzeg. The research has shown that the local community of Podkarpackie cities rarely uses the various forms of social participation offered to them by the local administration. This is why the administration’s activities should focus on making residents aware of the benefits of participation. Providing residents with relevant information on the principles, forms, or methods of participation may prejudge the quality of life in a given local government and the course of its development. Keywords: Local administration, social participation, cooperation, inhabitant’s activity. 1. INTRODUCTION In Poland, there has been a growing interest of citizens in public affairs, especially at the local level, for several years now. The issue of citizens' involvement in the process of 1 Mariola Grzebyk, DSc, PhD, Eng. Associate Prof., Institute of Economics and Finance, University of Rzeszów, M. Ćwikli ńskiej 2 Str., 35-601 Rzeszów, Poland; e-mail: [email protected]. ORCID: 0000-0003-1107-0250 (corresponding author). 2 Agata Pier ścieniak, DSc, PhD, Eng. Associate Prof., Faculty of Management and Economics, Gdansk University of Technology, Narutowicza 11/12 Str., 80-233 Gdansk, Poland; e-mail: [email protected]. ORCID: 0000-0002-1724-6766. 16 M. Grzebyk, A. Pier ścieniak territorial unit management depends on the level of social development of a given community. The aspect of citizen empowerment, giving them appropriate rights, competences and duties is one of the key elements of participatory democracy, its main strength and guarantee of effectiveness. From a democratic perspective, citizen participation is considered a valuable element of democratic citizenship and democratic decision-making. Participatory and deliberative democrats, in particular, argue that citizen participation has positive effects on the quality of democracy (Michels et al., 2010). Social participation is primarily conducive to building relations between local government and citizens based on the principle of partnership and participation in local decision-making processes. Its extensive use in local government practice fosters the building of a civic community in which residents are not the object but the subject of public policy. Public participation brings the government closer to the people. It enables citizens to set policy goals and priorities, oversee the actions of the politicians and administrators and hold them accountable for their actions, express points of view, share information and point to their needs and problems, get involved in the decision-making process and many others (Grzebyk et.al., 2019; Harula and Radu, 2010). The emphasis on the importance of social participation can also be found in EU regulations or OECD reports (2001), which have been translated into national documents (including legal ones), and may also take the form of good practices or recommendations. The aim of the article is to evaluate the activity and involvement of local administration in creating appropriate conditions for active participation of residents in the field of social participation. Its implementation required answers to the following research questions: • How do the inhabitants of the examined cities perceive the activity of local administration? • Do the residents know the forms and tools used by local authorities for public participation? • Which of the forms of participation are considered the most effective by the inhabitants? • What are the main barriers to public participation according to the residents? The spatial scope of the research covers all cities with poviat status located in Podkarpackie Province, Poland, namely Krosno, Przemy śl, Rzeszów and Tarnobrzeg 3. In order to implement the research assumptions of the article, it has been divided into several parts, including a literature review, surveys, analysis of results and conclusions. In order to determine the state of social participation in the mentioned town cities, one of the basic research techniques, i.e. surveys, was used. By using this technique, it was possible to reliably gather and classify data related to the phenomenon of social participation. In addition, the information obtained allowed to determine the scale, degree and dynamics of social participation. The survey was conducted on 100 people in each city. The criterion for the selection of respondents was the length of time they lived in a given locality, which was at least three years. Living in a given city for a longer period of time allowed inhabitants to be more involved in public affairs. The survey contained a number of both open and closed questions 3 In the research part, certain abbreviations have been used to facilitate analysis and for better transparency. The following markings were used: K – Krosno, P – Przemy śl, RZ – Rzeszów and T – Tarnobrzeg. Assessing the activities of local administrations… 17 to obtain the data necessary to recognize and present the studied phenomenon on a local scale.The article is a continuation of the research on social participation conducted by the authors in the cities earlier mentioned. 2. TASKS AND ROLE OF LOCAL ADMINISTRATION IN THE FIELD OF SOCIAL PARTICIPATION Cities with poviat status are self-governing units that perform both commune and poviat tasks (Kaczmarek, 2016) in various spheres, including communal, social or infrastructural ones. Each of these spheres determines the quality of everyday life of the vast majority of the population and has an impact on the socio-economic growth of the region. Local administration has a service-oriented character towards its inhabitants, so it cannot remain “deaf” to opinions and needs expressed from below. Membership participation has become a veritable strategy for empowerment in the development scene. The participation of community members in development activities enhances capacity building (Uche et. al., 2019). Social participation is perceived as a way of external cooperation (Kakumba, Nsingo, 2008) between public authorities and residents. It should be based on common and consensual identification of problematic issues and a mutually satisfactory solution to them in a meaningful way, through exchange and justification of reasons, two-way education and training and acquisition of civic competences (Alexiu et.al, 2011; McGann, 2006). Creighton (2005) argues that “public participation is the process by which public concerns, needs and values are incorporated into the governmental and corporate decision-making. It is a two-way communication and interaction, with the overall goal of better decisions that are supported by the public. Bradbury et al. (1999) argued that public participation should be viewed as a dialogue or a communicative act in which fair and competent processes are emphasized. King et. al. (1998) adds that making decisions in public administration without public participation is ineffective. Advocates for participation note that policy and development which adopt a bottom-up framework where local communities are actively involved in decision-making, better facilitate the achievement of target objectives. The basis for social participation in the local dimension is the use of citizens' rights (e.g. direct decision-making through local elections or referendums). As some authors note (Edelenbos, Klijn, 2005; Fishkin, 2009; Harula, Radu, 2010) voting is not the only form of public participation: public debates, public meetings, citizens juries, citizens polls, written notices, comments and suggestions, mailings etc. do not even manage to exhaust the list of all possible instruments either citizens or officials can use in order to enhance the public participation dimension of the policy making process. Some authors suggest (Innes, Booher, 2007) that participation should be understood as a multi ‐way set of interactions among citizens and other players who together produce outcomes. Authentic dialogue, networks and institutional capacity are the key elements. Next steps involve developing an alternative practice framework, creating forums and arenas, adapting